


Trust Me, I’ve Been There

by LadyPrince



Category: Borderlands (Video Games)
Genre: Emotional Manipulation, M/M, Mentioned Gayperion
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-03-08
Updated: 2019-03-08
Packaged: 2019-11-13 18:53:10
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,392
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18036923
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/LadyPrince/pseuds/LadyPrince
Summary: One night, Jack takes things a step further. One night, Jack learns about an awfully, wonderfully good thing. One night, Jack has both their interests in mind.





	Trust Me, I’ve Been There

**Author's Note:**

> Originally written on tumblr.
> 
>  **Original date published:** 10th of January, 2016.

He always has a choice, Rhys repeats to himself. Whether it is silence, or just being a snarky shit, Rhys always has a choice. Sometimes, Jack whispers in his ears the best decision – in his opinion – to take and, rarely, Rhys indulges him. He _does_ make good points about some of the decisions Rhys has to take sometimes, but most times he is just giving Rhys advice that will get him killed or hurt within ten ways or more.

Jack isn’t always reliable with his advice, but the man himself is so _very_ reliable that Rhys doesn’t know what to feel. There are times when Jack grins, his teeth shining even though they are just lines of data emulating perfect teeth, and Rhys finds himself shuddering and dreaming of that grin every time he closes his eyes.

Doesn’t know why, and doesn’t question it. Jack is an inexplicable person; moody and temperamental, Rhys thinks it is best if he just doesn’t question Jack all the damn time.

Because he has a choice. He always has a choice, he tells himself every time he drifts off to sleep as Jack rambles and grumbles about something or other. Always complaining for the sake of complaining, he remembers telling Vaughn once, and he remembers his friend’s wide grin, gentle and kind, and considers that maybe he is going to ask him out when this is all over.

What better way to ask a brofriend to be your boyfriend than to save him from wherever the hell is and then finish this vault mess? It is at least… way more explosive than what Rhys originally had in mind.

But that isn’t the focus right now. What is his focus right now is the way Jack seems to be yelling about something or other, forcing him awake as he rambles on and on about Helios as they slowly inch closer to returning to that hellhole of a place. He doesn’t know how to feel about returning up there and Jack doesn’t comment – surprisingly – on the way Rhys looks up at the giant ‘H’ in the sky.

It is weirdly soothing to look up and see the spaceship up there. It is soothing as it is terrifying, because he’s going to be taking Jack back there. Doubt gnaws at his stomach and he glances over to Jack, still rambling on and on about something, and the hologram seems to eventually notice his gaze on him.

With a single eyebrow arching, Jack looks at him patronisingly before he says something snide, the comment going in one ear and out the other, and Rhys barely thinks about his response. Jack seems to crack a grin at… whatever Rhys said and he gives him a finger gun, a ‘pshew-pshew’ following afterwards, and Rhys hates to admit how much it comforts him that Jack does that.

It’s like having a brother again, and Rhys ignores the way his chest constricts and he exhales heavily. It is really, really late [he thinks] now, and he needs to at least sleep. He has been awake for way too long, and if he keeps lagging around then Jack is going to complain even more.

As his eyes slip shut, he misses the way Jack looks at him critically. When consciousness is gone, Jack begins to move his own arm and wriggles his fingers experimentally.

The smile on Jack’s face is venomous when Rhys’s _flesh_ arm follows the movement.

* * *

Getting on Helios feels… empty. Meeting with Yvette feels empty because she is empty, all words that lack bite as she talks about her deal with Vasquez. It’s disconcerting to hear her talk about him like an object, not seeing through his perfect disguise, and it makes his chest bubble with anger when he notes the distant tone in her voice.

“Remember what I told ya, kitten? When I saved ya?” Jack pops in from the side with his hands on his hips and his body leaning forward towards Yvette. “Don’t trust anyone, don’t have friends. Keeps _this shit_ from happening.” Jack looks over at him, a distant angry look on his face and Rhys doesn’t acknowledge him. At that, Jack grins and stands behind Yvette, phases his hands through her breasts, and pretends that both of his hands are her breasts talking.

It takes all of his willpower to not look at those hands in abject horror. He really, really hates Jack right now, and the man’s jeering laughter only makes him hate him _even more._

[But it’s not the malicious hate that so many have for him on Pandora—no. It’s more the hatred reserved for family, for people who tease you and yet you find yourself with them. It should be alarming.]

He makes his way past Yvette, dismisses her words as she threatens him with shit that would scare Vasquez but mean nothing to Rhys. He struggles to keep the betrayal from showing on his face, and Jack is nowhere to be seen as he puts the plan into full operation now.

* * *

Of course, hacking into the system is proving even more a challenge that he expects. He doesn’t know why he’s all that surprised, considering that Jack himself wrote this, and even Jack acknowledges this as he pops into existence with a smarmy gin and hooded eyes.

“You should let me help you, Rhysie boy,” Jack says, words slick and smooth, when Rhys is about to protest due to ugly pride. He stops for a moment and stares at Jack, a frown on his lips as he considers it.

He _can_ do this himself. He knows it; no matter how often people made fun of Rhys for being an ‘idiot’, he knows that if he just has, maybe, eleven minutes then he can hopefully understand the complicated mess of code that is Jack’s software. It’ll also save him all the boasting that Jack will undoubtedly do later. Hell, he may even impress him if just given the time.

But… when he thinks deeper about it… Jack is offering. Jack is better at this than Rhys is. So… when he thinks even further about it…

_[_ **_▲_ ** _] Trust Jack_

… Is it really all that bad to take a shortcut? All of his thoughts seem to take a sudden backseat at the idea of it being just a shortcut and he shrugs. “Y’know what? Yeah. I could use the help.” He admits softly, and Jack seems unnaturally elated about… something.

Probably over the idea of holding some more superiority over Rhys’s head, like he always does. Jack backs away then, flicks at where Rhys’s robot arm should be, and Rhys finds himself installing a new software to help with the hacking.

It takes less than a minute to break in, and Rhys thinks that he really _did_ make a good decision to let Jack help because eleven minutes would probably break all of their backs. He can’t believe that he forgot that they don’t have all the time in the world right now, and he tries to shove the shame to the back of his head.

Surprisingly, it’s easy for Rhys to forget the shame the moment he has to help Fiona and Sasha out.

* * *

Yvette arrives in his office sometime later, all anger and actual raw emotion this time when she confronts him about the fact that Vasquez is Vasquez and not Rhys. She makes demands, yells about Rhys and the deal, and Rhys is actually on edge and gripping the arms of his chair too tightly. Something bitter and loathing bubbles in his chest, and Rhys doesn’t have time to think about what it means when Yvette brings up her ECHO to call security.

This is going to be her office now, and the bubbling sensation in Rhys’s chest seems to get _worse._ It feels like his heart is _boiling_ on the inside. Jack’s form appears next to him, upper body leaning above his shoulder, and his gaze is focused on Yvette. “Hey, _princess,_ ” he doesn’t miss the way Jack emphasises the nickname, “use Dumpy on her. I’ll make Dumpy’s paralysing shot even stronger- knock her out for a good few hours.”

She’s talking to the head of security, her voice hissing and scathing due to some sort of holdup. Rhys looks over to Jack while he still has the time before his gaze falls back on Yvette’s back. “Won’t it hurt her?” Rhys mumbles, and Jack just looks at him incredulously.

“She _betrayed_ you, princess. _Sold you out_ like some sort of _meat._ You really gonna care if she gets hurt or not?” Jack hisses, something heavy in his voice, and Rhys doesn’t know what to make of it.

Maybe he should just… he should just…

_[_ **_◼_ ** _] Trust Jack_

… Now that he thinks about it, Jack _is_ right. She did sell his life out for this promotion. He nods at Jack and the man’s grin is wide and powerful, eyes beaming with _strength_ despite just being a single blue colour and Rhys shudders as he feels an odd crackle of energy.

As he brings Yvette’s attention onto him, he calls up his friend Dumpy and exhales deeply as he gets ready to let Yvette have a piece of his mind.

* * *

He is _actually_ here. There are a lot of thoughts rushing through his head; all panicked and happy and anxious and _wow_ if he didn’t puke already, he would have from the excitement. He coughs harshly and Jack is standing behind him, arms crossing in front of his chest and his head tilts as Rhys has a horrible coughing attack.

“Wow, okay, my office is _noooot_ that dusty, cupcake. I’m pretty sure you guys worship me too much for that to happen.” Jack comments and Rhys turns to glare at him, his heart hammering too quickly in his chest. Jack notices that too, and raises an eyebrow. “Also, don’t have a heart attack on me, that’d be a pretty shitty way to go.”

“Oh shut up, like you’d let me _die._ ” Rhys grumbles in response, not really realising what he just said, and Jack just grins wide and amused. Rhys shakes his head at him before he looks down, eyes wide with glee and giddiness at being _Handsome Jack’s office._

The fanboy in him is screaming. The actual logical person in him reminds him that he needs to find Gortys’s last upgrade. He looks around, eyes falling on Jack, and he raises an eyebrow when he sees him lounging on the golden chair. “Soooo…” he starts, waving his hands, “where is it?”

Jack grunts at first then sits up properly, his gaze wistful as he stares down at the chair before he gestures at a shelf with his head. “Over there- pretty much a trophy case, if you wanna call it that.” There’s an odd, nostalgic look on his face and Rhys doesn’t question him.

He is quick on his feet, makes his way over to the trophy case with his ECHOcomm ready to show Gortys each piece until she found her upgrade. He thinks it’s the funny little U-shape with a sphere in it, but it doesn’t help to be sure. Besides, he needs some time to think.

Jack looks thoughtful, face pensive as he just stares at Rhys. There is something going on behind there, and Rhys hates the silence as Jack seems to be contemplating something. When he has Gortys’s upgrade in hand and the ECHOcomm is turned off, he turns to Jack.

“I can’t believe I’m saying this,” Rhys begins, and Jack barely flickers in his direction, “but why are you so quiet? It’s freaky. You’re always… Jacking. Around. Wow, that sounds bad.”

All he gets is a quirk of an eyebrow before Jack’s face is unreadable once more, and it is only when Rhys’s back is facing Jack does the hologram say something. “Got somethin’ important in mind, babe.” Jack says, words oddly foreboding, but Rhys doesn’t say anything in response.

That’s all he needs to know, right? He has to respect boundaries, even if it did seem like Jack has none. “So, what’s the way outta here?”

“On the chair, Rhysie. Have a nice, relaxing sit on it; you’re gonna _love_ the chair.” Jack says, voice enthusiastic and giddy like a murderous child, and Rhys exhales the breath that he didn’t realise he has been holding. Soon enough, a childish smile spreads on Rhys’s face as he finally gets to sit on Jack’s chair.

It’s even comfier than he imagined it to be. It feels better than he ever expected. He sinks into it and he has to keep the laugh from escaping him. This is… way better than he expected. He looks at Jack with the glee of a child getting ice cream from his parents, and Rhys doesn’t even register Jack’s snide comment at first.

He does, however, hear the next one. “You look good in that chair, Rhysie. You earned it.” Jack says, and it makes his heart flutter to have his idol compliment him in such a way. However, it doesn’t take Rhys long to take in the pensive expression on Jack’s face.

Within a few seconds, Jack looks weirdly sad and Rhys tenses up at the expression. Something in his stomach is lurching at the sight, and he feels sick and anxious. “Ja-“ he starts, but Jack immediately breaks him off. “This may be our last chance to talk properly, you and I.”

That immediately grabs his attention and Rhys furrows his brow as he looks at the hologram proper. Rhys can’t… can’t tell what’s going on with Jack right now. It feels like he is being strangled and he feels restless. He waits for Jack to speak again, and it feels like the man is taking ten years to talk.

“If I told you that… you could have the same power that I had when I was alive, what would you do?”

* * *

The question repeats itself over and over in his head. Jack is talking, going on and on about the power that this room can give Rhys. His head is spinning, and Jack is just talking in an oddly reserved manner that makes Rhys wants to pinch himself awake.

This is all a dream, right? But he doesn’t wake up and Jack shakes his head at him when he notices how hard Rhys is pinching himself. “This is real, Rhys.” He used his name. Rhys’s eyes widen at that and he looks at Jack with a gaping mouth. “I’m actually offering you Hyperion, princess. Think about it- you, me, the CEOs of Hyperion.”

So many thoughts are flooding his head at once. He can do so many things as the Hyperion- save Vaughn, save everyone, get the vault business done with, dispose of Vallory and everyone else that hurt him, and _there are so many things he can do as Hyperion’s CEO._

But a part of him is, understandably, apprehensive. His eyes are darting all over the place, and Jack is just quiet for a bit as he lets this all sink in.

“What would you do, Rhys?” He asks after a while, and Rhys swallows thickly. His entire body feels heavy and his heart is hammering against his chest, and Jack is just sitting there and waiting. Rhys didn’t know that Jack is a patient man—learning something new every day. Every god damn day.

He swallows thickly once more, licks his lips, and finally forces words out. “I’d… save everyone, I guess. I wanna save Vaughn first, then get this whole business done with, and then hurt the people that hurt me.” He confesses; the words alien and foreign as the truth drips from his lips like molasses.

Jack seems satisfied at the answer. He stands up and paces around, hands on his hips, and he looks over to Rhys once he seems done thinking. “So… whaddaya say then, cupcake?” He almost chokes when Jack asks, and the other man pointedly ignores that reaction. “D’ya wanna rule Hyperion? Together?”

There is still the part of him that’s apprehensive. He doesn’t know anything about being a CEO, and what if he gets on Jack’s bad side with his incompetence? What would Fiona and Sasha think? They _hate_ Hyperion. _Everyone_ on Pandora hates Hyperion. Vaughn—would Vaughn feel betrayed that he just did this?

He isn’t fit to be CEO just yet, and he wants to tell that to Jack, but he looks up and sees the oddly hopeful expression on the CEO’s face and he thinks that maybe he’s hallucinating. Doubt and excitement grip his heart tight, and he doesn’t know what to tell Jack exactly.

So many parts of him are screaming _no,_ yet there is one part of him that soothes him. It reminds him of how Jack is always there, always helping—even if he didn’t need to, always… always just weirdly comforting. Maybe he’s being deluded, but he thinks about the fact that Jack actually _helped_ him when he just could have let Rhys do it the hard way and—

_[ **O** ] Trust Jack_

“Yeah.” The word leaves his lips before he can even comprehend what is going on; huh, is it just him, or is everything so much slower suddenly? “Yeah. Yes. _Yes._ ” He repeats, the words spilling quickly yet sounding so slow in his ears, and Jack grins wide, teeth showing and he looks almost manic—but the expression is gone so quickly that Rhys thinks he just imagined it.

He points at a button then and Rhys follows his gaze curiously. “There’s an override drive in the chair. You can call it up with that button—and given that I’m in your head, you just gotta… jack it in, and Hyperion will be ours.”

_‘Don’t do it. Don’t do it. Don’t do it. Don’t do it. Don’t shove something else in your head. Don’t you remember what happened last time? Don’t d-‘_

The panicked words are inaudible, and Rhys doesn’t exactly know what he’s thinking about right now. His head feels so fuzzy and heavy suddenly, filling up with static as he hears the clicking of the drive extending from the chair. It looks so uninviting like that; sharp and pointing at him accusatorily.  

Slowly, his flesh hand rises to grab the drive. He brings it close to his head, and he only stops when he hears Fiona’s voice in his ear. “Rhys, what’s taking so long?” She asks, irritated, and everything seems to suddenly fall apart.

His eyes wide, he looks at the drive in his flesh hand and he’s quiet for a bit. Jack stare at him, waiting and aware of Fiona’s presence. His eyes are narrowed, and Rhys is trying to take everything in—

Looking at Jack, Rhys takes in a deep breath and exhales. “I can’t do this.” He whispers, soft enough for Jack to hear and Fiona to miss, and he’s about to move the drive away from him before it hits Rhys that he can’t move his flesh arm.

This time, his world seems to come to a stop. Jack is standing in front of him, one hand mimicking his flesh and his expression is blank and empty. Easy and quick, Jack moves his hand and forces him to press the drive into his own head.

His heart is hammering in his chest, and Fiona is asking him questions that he can’t hear. He needs—he needs to tell Fiona, he needs to tell Fiona— _Oh god, he needs to—_

_[_ **_✖_ ** _] Help Me. Help Me. Fiona, please help me, please help me, I— **Trust Jack.**_

“Don’t worry.” Jack says, and _Rhys says,_ because his mouth is moving with Jack and—“Just getting everything into position.”

Fiona mumbles a confirmation in response, and the call is cut off and Rhys is left alone with Jack— _Jack_ who is talking through him and then laughing, voice echoing everywhere and nowhere and in his head and outside of it—

The large windows behind him are covered in Jack’s visage as the chair turns him around to look at Jack, happy and elated and _angry_. _“It’s ours now, Rhysie boy!”_ His voice seems to echo everywhere, and the chair is clamping restraints down on his wrists and he’s struggling in vain.

**_“Everything is ours now, Rhysie! And I won’t let you walk away.”_ **


End file.
